Hoto-litho



(No Model.)

G. W. THOMAS.

BABY JUMPER.

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

No. 462,178. Patented Oct. 27, 1891.

, All; .l (144444444416!!! w r l I, a l I h. who i I (No Model.) 2 SheetsSheet 2.

G. W. THOMAS. BABY JUMPER.

No. 462,178. Patented Oct. 27, 1891.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE XV. THOMAS, OF BALTIMORE, MARYLAND, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO I l. S. BRElVINGTON, OF SAME PLACE.

BABY-J UM PER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 462,178, dated October 27, 1891.

Application filed February 18, 1891l fierial No. 381,904:- (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE W. THOMAS, a citizen of the United States, residing at Baltimore, in the State of Maryland, have invented b certain new and'useful Improvements in Baby Swings and Jumpers; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to to make and use the same.

The present invention relates to an improved baby swing and jumper; and the ob j ect is to provide a device which can be quickly and easily taken apart, packed Within a narrow compass, and conveniently carried from one place to another, and which is also readily adjusted for use.

A further object of the invention is to simplify the construction of the parts and at the same time secure strength with such simplicity; and a further object is to provide an automatic fan adapted to be operated by the swinging of the carriage or body; and a further object is to amuse the child by causing it to catch at or pull a rope or cord, so that the slight movement is utilized to move the body, which is so lightly suspended that such movement will rock or swing the body.

With these ends in view the invention consists in the combination, in a baby swing or jumper, of a horizontal supporting-bar, a pair of standards or legs detachably secured to said supporting-bar, a swaying body, and coiled suspending springs connected to the 3 5 body and the supporting-bar. I preferably employ a carrying-bar having. recesses or grooves in its faces and edges near both ends of the same, and in these recesses are fitted blocks which are secured to opposing faces of a pair of standards, such blocks being hinged together at their lower ends and fitting snugly in the recesses of the supportingbar, in which positions they are confined by a suitable locking device at the upper ends 5 of said blocks. The standards are securely fastened to the supporting-bar, and they cannot slip or become disconnected from said bar, and the bar and standards form avery strong support or trestle, from which the carriage or body can swin The invention further consists in the com bination, with a supporting-bar and a swinging body, of a rock-shaft journaled in the bar and adapted to carry a fan, a cord or chain connected to an arm of the rock shaft and to the swinging body, so that the motion of the body is utilized to operate the shaft or fan, and one or more retractile springs connected to the shaft.

My invention further consists in the novel construction and arrangement of parts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of my improved baby swing and jumper. Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional view through the swing, and Fig. 3 is a detail view of a portion of the trestle or frame to show the peculiar connection of the standards to the supporting-bar.

Like letters of reference denote corresponding parts in the several figures'of the drawings, in which- A designates the swinging carriage or body, which is suspended from a supporting-barB, sustained by two pairs of legs 0 O and D D.

The supporting-bar B is arranged in a horizontal position, and near both ends the bar is reduced by forming grooves or recesses b b in its opposite faces and edges, (see Fig. 3,) it being understood that such grooved portions are made in the bar near both ends thereof.

The legs or standards 0 C of one pair are arranged in divergent positions, and the legs D D of the other pair are likewise arranged in relation to each other, and the legs of each pair are connected by means of blocks E E,

said blocks being rigidly fastened to the respective standards and hinged together at their lower ends by a hinge e. The inner o face of the hinged blocks E E meet on avertical line, as shown; but the outer face of said blocks are inclined or beveled in reverse directions to accommodate or adapt said blocks to the diverging standards, which are applied directly to such inclined faces of the blocks and are rigidly fastened to the blocks by screws or in any other suitable manner.

The vertical meeting edges of the hinged blocks are recessed or cut away somewhat to I00 form the lips e, which adapt the blocks to fit snugly in the reduced portions of the, supporting-bar and to meet each other above and below said bar, as shown, whereby the standards are connected to the supporting-bar in such a secure manner that they cannot slip on the bar or become detached from the same.

The blocks and standards are locked or confined in their proper position by suitable locking devices E, one to each pair of blocks and standards. The locking device may be of any approved form. and as one embodiment of such device I have shown-a swinging plate pivoted, as at f, to one of the blocks E, and having a notch or recess f in one edge, which is adapted when the plate is swinging across the line of the blocksto receive afixed pin or stud f in the other block E.

The swinging carriage or body A may be made of wicker or any suitable material and o'fan-y shape and size suitable for the purpose, and said carriage has apair of upright arms a; a, although braces with inclined sid e pieces may be used, if desired. These arms a a are preferably inclined or thrown forward slightly to lift the rear end of the body and tilt it somewhat forward, and in the upper ends of said arms I provide the cast-metal cap-pieces a, which are formed with the loops or eyes a to receive the hooks on the lower ends of the coiled suspending springs G G. These coil-ed springs may be swelled or enlarged at the middle to taper at the ends, and hooks g are provided at both ends of such Springsteen-able them to-be readily connected to and detached from thecap-pieces a and the books or eyes g rigidly fastened in the lower side of the supporting-bar A. (See Fig. 2.) The body or carriage is suspended wholly by the-coiled springs, which give an easy resilient motion tothe carriage or body, tended tosoothe an infant or child, and the carriage can beswung back and forth or given a slight sidewise-rocking motion, or it can be moved vertically and jumped up and down.

A fan-carrying shaft II is ournaled in suitable supports h on the supporting-bar B, so

as to rock or oscillate a limited distance, and at one end this rock-shaft is formed or provided with a socket I, while at its other end said shaft has an angular arm I. In the socket I a fan-handle is to be fitted, and "as the shaft rocks the fan j is moved back and forth over the swinging body. The rock-shaft is operated by means of a chain, rope, cord, or other flexible medium K, one end of which is attached to the rockshaft through the medium of the spring L and the other end of which cord is attached to an eye or lug K, formedon one-of the cap-pieces a of the swayingbody. Thecoil springLisco-nnected to' the arm of the rock-shaft and has a hook attached to one of the links of the chain, whereby the spring. takes up the slack in the chain, and it can be adjusted to regulate varying weights that may be placed in the carriage. A retractile spring L, connected to the arm I of the rock-shaft, serves to hold the shaft under tension, so that the shaft will be operated by a slight swaying motion of the carriage.

M designates a spring-arm having a prong m at its inner end, which prong is fitted in a vertical aperture or socket m in the supporting-bar B, and the free end of this spring-arm M carries a bell or tassel, or both, or any other suitable contrivance adapted to attract the attention of a child and amuse it. A string or cord m is attached to the free end of the spring-arm and leads to the carriage or body,

and a slight pull on this cord by the child will be sufficien-t to move or sway the body, which is so lightly suspended that an easy pull will sway it.

The operation is simple, and may be-briefly stated as follows; A slight pull or push is suffici-ent to sway the body, or it can be rocked or moved either sidewise or vertical1'y, and

the coiledsprings impart an easy resilient motion to the body, which as it sways back and forth operates the rock-shaft to move the depending fan. To take the device apart, the chain or cord K and the springs are detached from the caps to to take the carriage off the supporting-bar and the fastenings F operated to releaseth-e blocks E E from the bar B, after which the standards and the bar B, with its attached parts, can be packed within the carriage for conveniently carrying the device.

It will be seen that the device can be quickly taken apart, and it is obvious that it can be as readily adjusted and set up for use. The device is simple and strong in construction, can be manufactured at a low cost, and iticannot be easily upset by accident when in use. Changes in the form and proportion of parts and details of construction can be made without departing from the spirit or sacrificing the advantages of my invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a baby swing and jumper, the combination of a supporting-bar, the standards hinged together in pairs and removabl y clamped tothe supporting-bar, the carriage, and the detachable coiled springs connected to said carriage and to the supporting-bar, substantially as described. 7

2. In a babyswing andju-mper, the grooved supporting-bar, the standards, and the hinged blocks rigidly secured to the standards and T fitting in the grooved portions of the bar, in combination with the suspension-springs attached to the bar, and the carriage supported by said springs, substantially as described.

3. A baby swing and jumper comprising the I supporting-bar, the standards, the suspending springs attached to said bar, the carriage supported by the springs, and the spring-arm attached to the bar and extending over the carriage and having a depending cord leading to the carriage, substantially as described.

at. In a baby swing and jumper, the combination of the supporting-bar having the standards, the carriage suspended from said bar, the fan-carrying rock-shaft supported on the bar above the carriage, and connections intermediate of the rock-shaft and the carriage,

substantially as described.

5. In a baby swing and jumper, the combi nation of a supporting-bar having the standards, a carriage suspended from said bar, the rock-shaft journaled at the bar and havinga fan-socket and the angular arm, the chain or cord connected to the arm and t0 the carriage, and one or more retractile springs connected to the arm of the rock-shaft, substan tially as described.

In testimony whereof Iaffix my signature in presence of two witnesses.

GEORGE W. THOMAS. Witnesses:

THOS. H. LEARY, HARRY A. ALLERS. 

